American Airlines Celebrates 80 Years of Flight Attendants

Marc Fein, NBC 5 News

Eighty years ago today, on May 3, 1933, the first four American Airlines stewardesses graduated from training and headed out on their first flight.

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Friday is a very special day for Fort Worth-based American Airlines.  Eighty years ago today, on May 3, 1933, the first four American Airlines stewardesses graduated from training and headed out on their first flight.

So we thought, what better time to take a trip down memory lane.

Over the last 80 years things have changed quite a bit for stewardesses, now commonly referred to as flight attendants. The four original American Airlines stewardesses graduated after three days of training in 1933. In 1957 the airline opened the world's first school dedicated to the profession, the American Airlines Stewardess College. At graduation,  a "flyover" was not uncommon as part of the celebration.

Traveling the world has always been a glamorous profession. Fittingly, much of the evolution of the profession has had to do with the uniform; from the military look of the early years, to the cutting-edge style of Bill Blass's uniforms in 1972.

They also broke down barriers by being one of the first airlines to hire black stewardesses. They were also the very first to carry AED's on every single flight.

American said Friday it is excited to celebrate and honor the professionals who have been the face of the airline for the last eight decades, and for those to come.

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Pit Bull Saves N.Y. Woman from House Fire

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A pit bull saved a woman from a fire in her home in New York on Friday, barking to alert her as the flames began to spread from the front to the back of the house.

Jackie Bonasera said she was drying her hair in an upstairs bathroom of the home in East Norwich, N.Y., on Long Island, when she heard the dog barking. She ran downstairs and saw the flames on the side of her garage. 

She was able to escape the house.

"I ran out of the house and my neighbors came running over, and then I thought about the dog — I'm like, 'He saved my life, I have to save his,'" Bonasera recounted.

"So I just put my robe over my face and I ran back in and I grabbed the dog and then I stood out here and I watched my house burn," she said.

Bonasera believes she would have been trapped upstairs if the dog, named Cain, hadn't alerted her to the fire.

Bonasera's daughter, Alexus Stallworth, said Cain is "the town hero."

"He's a pit bull, too," said Stallworth. "They have such bad reps, but he's such a good boy."

Stallworth was outside the house when the fire broke out and captured the blaze on her cell phone camera.

More than 70 firefighters were needed to stop the fire. Although the cause of the blaze has not been determined and the arson squad is investigating, police don't believe it's suspicious.

The homeowner is a contractor who is working on several homes that were damaged by Sandy, and he said he now hopes he can get his own home fixed before winter.

--Greg Cergol and Jeff Richardson contributed to this story

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Massive Food Fight at Fla. High School Ends with Student's Arrest

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A student was arrested after a food fight escalated at Cypress Bay High School in the South Florida suburb of Weston, according to authorities.

A 17-year-old was arrested on one charge of battery and one charge of disorderly conduct Friday afternoon after a massive food fight that spilled out into the school's courtyard, according to the Broward County Sheriff's Office.

Officials said school administrators witnessed a 12th-grader throw an object. When the assistant principal tried to stop the student, he resisted by pulling, pushing and striking the assistant principal, authorities said.

He was taken into custody by deputies, one of whom sustained a knee laceration and a twisted ankle, according to police. The student, who turns 18 Sunday, faces felony charges for striking a school employee and resisting arrest without violence, authorities said. BSO initially reported the student faced charges of resisting arrest with violence.

The student's sister said he threw a piece of bread.

"Everyone was throwing things and they told him to move away," she said. "Two of the security guards from Cypress tackled him, apparently, and they were ripping his shirt and they were throwing him everywhere."

One Cypress Bay student said the situation "turned just absolutely insane."

"Everybody just started throwing food and 15 minutes later I see the cops showing up," that student said.

According to another student, the fight began when someone started throwing apples. The students then moved outside to the courtyard and formed a giant circle where they were throwing water bottles and other types of food, he said.

The students said the scene was absolute chaos.

"It turned into a mosh pit for some reason in the middle of the riots and me and a bunch of friends got punched in the face and we started punching people," another student said. "They started chanting, 'Only at Cypress,' it was crazy."

Other students said a rivalry with Western High School sparked it.

"I think Twitter had a lot to do with it this morning because Western was talking about having a food fight and they're our biggest rivals, so I feel that Cypress wanted to do something bigger," one student said.

Some parents are saying the situation could have been controlled.

"Cypress Bay has at least five thousand students, and they need more security measures for one thing, but they need people in the cafeteria to not have this happen," mother Jan Silverman said.

The Cypress Bay principal is reviewing video and trying to determine who started the fight, said Broward School Board officials. It is still too early to determine whether or not there will be suspensions, they said.

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Perry's Target Practice Video the Talk of NRA Meeting

Omar Villafranca, NBC 5 News

A short video that played just before Governor Rick Perry took the stage in Houston is attracting quite a bit of attention.

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Mix Governor Rick Perry, a Ted Nugent song, a military style rifle and n egg exploding during target practice  together and you get the most talked about introduction video at this week's National Rifle Association's meeting in Houston.

The short video played just before Perry took the stage to a welcome applause from the crowd.

The video shows Perry taking aim at an egg from about 100 yards out with a LaRue Tactical rifle - a company that recently opened up shop in Texas.

The video then shows Perry hitting metal targets like a marksman.

The video got quite a reaction online, and not all of it was good.

The responses on Twitter ranged from folks saying Perry's video did nothing but "promote and excite the already gun-thirsty and violent society" to others saying "I love Rick Perry! He should be President...great guy."

Some political pundits accused Perry of shooting the same type of weapon used in the Newtown, Conn. school shooting.

Tom Mannewitz with Target Master Indoor Shooting center, a Garland gun shop and range, said the gun looks like an AR-15 and has the same frame, but is different and shoots a different caliber bullet.

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American Airlines Celebrates 80 Years of Flight Attendants

Marc Fein, NBC 5 News

Eighty years ago today, on May 3, 1933, the first four American Airlines stewardesses graduated from training and headed out on their first flight.

American Airlines Celebrates 80 Years...

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http://www.nbcdfw.com/video/#!/news/local/American-Airlines-Celebrates-80-Years-of-Flight-Attendants/206042691

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Friday is a very special day for American Airlines.  Eighty years ago today, on May 3, 1933, the first four American Airlines stewardesses graduated from training and headed out on their first flight.

Over the last 80 years things have changed quite a bit for stewardesses, now commonly referred to as flight attendants. The four original American Airlines stewardesses graduated after three days of training in 1933. In 1957 the airline opened the world's first school dedicated to the profession, the American Airlines Stewardess College. At graduation,  a "flyover" was not uncommon as part of the celebration.

Traveling the world has always been a glamorous profession. Fittingly, much of the evolution of the profession has had to do with the uniform; from the military look of the early years, to the cutting-edge style of Bill Blass's uniforms in 1972.

They also broke down barriers by being one of the first airlines to hire black stewardesses. They were also the very first to carry AED's on every single flight.

American said Friday it is excited to celebrate and honor the professionals who have been the face of the airline for the last eight decades, and for those to come.

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Affidavit: Ricks Admitted to Stabbings in Bedford

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Suspect Caught in Bedford Apartment Slayings

A man suspected of killing his ex-girlfriend and her son at their apartment near Fort Worth is in an Oklahoma jail. Bedford police say Cedric Ricks was caught in Garvin County last night, hours after Roxann Sanchez and her eight-year-old son Anthony Figueroa were found stabbed to death.

Apartment Stabbing Suspect Arrested in Okla.

Oklahoma police have arrested a man Bedford police say fatally stabbed the mother of his child and her 8-year-old son Wednesday night before fleeing the state.

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Oklahoma State Police arrested a man overnight Wednesday that Bedford police say fatally stabbed the mother of his child and her 8-year-old son before fleeing the state in her car that same evening.

At about 8:40 p.m. Wednesday, police were called to an apartment complex on the 1400 block of Park Place Boulevard where a family member reported 38-year-old Cedric Ricks had attacked several people, including children.

When officers arrived, they found a woman, now identified as 30-year-old Roxann Diana Sanchez, and an 8-year-old boy, Anthony Reyes Figueroa, dead.  A 12-year-old boy was also injured in the attack, but survived, and was transported to Children's Medical Center in critical condition. Doctors said the boy suffered a brain injury in the violent attack, but remain hopeful he'll survive.

An 8-month-old child, now in the custody of Child Protective Services, was also in the apartment at the time of the stabbings and was not injured.

Police said Ricks and Sanchez were an estranged couple that had one child together, the 8-month-old found unharmed.

As officers investigated the scene, they learned the woman's car was missing and put out a multi-state alert for officers to be on the lookout for the vehicle.

About three hours later, shortly after 11 p.m., officers with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol stopped and arrested Ricks for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle about 70 miles north of the Texas-Oklahoma border in Garvin County.

While being held in the Garvin County Jail, three arrest warrants were issued for Ricks, two for murder and one for attempted murder. Each murder warrant had a $2 million bond while the attempted murder warrant had a bond amount of $500,000.

Ricks was arraigned on the charges Thursday afternoon.

Police are now working with Oklahoma authorities to transfer Ricks back to Texas, but he is fighting extradition. To get Ricks back in Texas, the Garvin County District Attorney will have to ask Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin to get a governor's warrant and force the extradition.  A judge advised the Garvin County Sheriff's Department that process may take as long as two months.

NBC 5 learned Thursday afternoon that a protective order that expired in January was the result of an assault that took place in Nov. 2012 where police said Ricks choked Sanchez.  After that incident, Child Protective Services became involved to determine the welfare of the children.

According to an affidavit obtained by NBC 5, Ricks called a cousin and admitted to killing Sanchez and her son.

The affidavit reads:

"Cedric Ricks informed her that he admitted to the stabbings. The witness related that Cedric Ricks told her that he was, 'hurt,' 'needed stitches,' and was 'cut up.'"

"The witness further stated that Cedric Ricks told her he was, 'Sorry,' 'Couldn't take it anymore,' and was 'Stressed,' and stated that 'Nobody loves me,' and that he was, 'Not going to jail.'"

Investigators were able to track Rick's cell phone to Ardmore, Okla. 

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol was able to stop Ricks for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and arrest him. 

According to Judy Ramos with the Hurst-Euless-Bedford independent School District, the 8-year-old was in the third grade at Spring Garden Elementary and the 12-year-old is a sixth grader.

Both children have attended the school since 2011 and, in a letter sent home to parents Thursday, the principal said the boys' grandmother worked at the school. 

NBC 5's Amanda Guerra, Ray Villeda, Shane Allen, Greg Janda and Frank Heinz contributed to this report.  Editor's note: A previous version of this story said Bedford police arrested Cedric Ricks.  He was arrested by Oklahoma Highway Patrol. We regret the error.

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Home Destroyed in Ellis County Fire

NBC 5 News

Fire engulfed a home in 1200 block of Dixie Lane in Ellis County. The man who lived in the home escaped unharmed.

Home Destroyed in Ellis County

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Fire investigators will look for the cause of a fire near Waxahachie just after midnight Friday.

Firefighters got the call to the 1200 block of Dixie Lane in unincorporated Ellis County at around 12:30 a.m.

When firefighters arrived they found a one-story brick home on fire. The man who lived at the home got out without injury.

Because of a lack of nearby fire hydrants and a strong north wind, Ellis County called for backup from four surrounding departments.

Tanker trucks were used to haul water to the fire, however the home was destroyed.

The Ellis County fire marshal will try to determine the cause of the fire.

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5.5-Months Pregnant Sheriff’s Deputy Saves Drowning Teen

Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy Jenna Underwood Nunez saved a 17-year-old boy from drowning on April 27, 2013, in Silverwood Lake. She was 5.5 months pregnant and off duty at the time of the rescue.

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A 17-year-old boy will celebrate his high school graduation month thanks to a 5.5-months pregnant, off-duty Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputy who rescued him from the bottom of a lake.

Deputy Jenna Underwood-Nunez was having dinner with her family in the Silverwood Lake campground in San Bernardino County when she heard screaming coming from the lake. A glance toward the water revealed frantic splashing about 200 yards away from the shore.

Authorities revealed the details of their colleague's harrowing April 27 rescue on Thursday.

"Placing herself and her unborn child at potential risk, Deputy Underwood sprang into action and immediately ran toward the drowning victim," Underwood's department said a statement.

Fully dressed, Underwood swam about 200 yards into the water to find the teen had already become fully submerged 15 feet below the surface. He was laying on lake bed.

Underwood dove to the bottom, pulled the victim up and then to shore, where she performed four cycles of CPR before the teen regained consciousness.

The boy was airlifted to the hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.

A six-year veteran of the force, Underwood works at the Century Regional Detention Facility.

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$12,000 Custom Bike Stolen From Double-Arm Amputee

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Double-Arm Amputee Taking on Ironman

On Saturday Hector Picard will compete in his first full Ironman competition – and try to become the first double-arm amputee to start and finish an Ironman. He talks about what made him not quit after the electrical accident that cost him his arms, discusses his triathlon "addiction," and shares some inspirational words.

Latin heartthrob, Cristian de la Fuente stops by the set to talk to Roxanne Vargas about this years Nautica South Beach Triathlon and his efforts to help St. Jude.

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A Florida triathlon athlete who is a double-arm amputee says someone stole his custom bike early Thursday morning.

"It's only fitted, it's modified for me. You can't sell it. You can't ride it. You can't do anything with it," Hector Picard said. "So by stealing it, they are doing a lot more damage than they really know."

Picard, 46, who has completed 73 triathlons in the past four years, said his special bike is worth $12,000 – but it's worthless to anyone besides him. It's a Seven Axiom titanium road bike, he said.

"It's definitely obvious. The handlebars are different, the brakes are different," he said. "The body of the bike, the frame, is completely modified. I mean, a regular person won't be able to use it."

Picard was involved in a work-related electrical accident in 1992.

"I received an electrical shock 21 years ago," he said. "Thirteen thousands volts of electricity went through my body and caused the amputations and the burns."

The accident left him in a coma for four weeks. His entire right arm and half of his left one were amputated.

Cristián de la Fuente Takes on Triathlon To Help St. Jude's Hospital

But Picard didn't quit – and now his mission in life is to inspire. Last August he became the first double-arm amputee to start and finish an Ironman race, and he has completed two more Ironman competitions since then.

On June 8 he will set off on a 3,200-mile bike journey to Spokane, Washington to raise money for a little boy with no arms.

But with his bike stolen, Picard has to turn to his old bike. Picard said it is a lot more difficult for him to use – not to mention the hours he will have to spend repairing it.

"I struggle a little more. I'm still going to do it," he said. "I'm not going to let anything like this stop me."

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Picard isn't looking for donations, just his bike. Anyone with information is asked to call Fort Lauderdale Police.

He said he won't let his latest challenge slow him down.

"I'm going to do it, I'm going to do it," Picard said. "God willing, as long as I'm healthy, bike or no bike, I'm going to do this, and it would just be nice to have that bike back."

For more information on Picard and his cross-country ride, see his website, dontstopliving.org.

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Corinth Pastor Arrested, Accused of Sex Charge

Omar Villafranca, NBC 5 News

A pastor in Corinth is out on bond after he was arrested Wednesday on charges of attempted sexual performance of a child.

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A pastor in Corinth was arrested at his home Wednesday on charges of attempted sexual performance of a child.

Pastor Jeffrey Dale Williams of The Church of Corinth is accused of attempting to persuade a child under the age of 18 to remove clothing and show herself completely naked, according to Corinth police.

The charges against Williams are a third degree felony.

Williams was booked into Denton County Jail. He was released on a $10,000 bond Wednesday night.

Police say the alleged incident did not happen at the church, but at a private residence. When asked whose house, the officer declined to comment.

Captain Greg Wilkerson with the Corinth Police Department says Child Protective Services alerted officers about allegations of sexual abuse. 

Wilkerson says officers followed up with the tip. Detectives also got their hands on a piece of recorded evidence which helped them get a warrant for an arrest.

"We were actually able to obtain an audio recording of the actual event and after locating the victim and interviewing her, she was able to corroborate what we already had heard on the tape," Wilkerson said.

Church members were shocked to hear the news of the arrest.

Tina Martin attends the Church of Corinth. She's known Williams for more than four years, and she can't believe the allegations against him.

"From what I know about Pastor Jeff Williams is that he is a God-fearing man who does everything to teach his congregation, his town and his people everything about God," Martin said.

The Church of Corinth released the following official statement early Thursday morning:

"We have no knowledge of nor any reason to suspect any inappropriate behavior. We intend to and will fully investigate the allegations, and we will fully cooperate with the authorities. Our prayers go out to this family of our Church."

Corinth police say the investigation is ongoing and are asking for any additional victims or witnesses to contact Corinth PD at 940-498-2017. 

No additional information has been provided at this time.

NBC 5's Omar Villafranca contributed to this report.

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